Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2008-09: Justin Holl skated in 28 games for Minnesota’s Minnetonka HS as a junior. He finished the season with 1 goal, 9 assists and 6 PMs. The Skippers were one of the top ranked teams in the state and faced Edina in the Section 6AA final.

2009-10: Played for Minnetonka High School, and then finished the season with the USHL’s Omaha Lancers. In 31 games for Minnetonka, Holl scored 20 goals and added 17 assists. In his 11-game stint with the Lancers, Holl picked up 4 assists and had a +7 rating. In 8 playoff games for the Lancers, Holl scored 1 goal and added 1 assist.

2010-11: Holl was in and out of the lineup at the University of Minnesota as a freshman, appearing in 25 games with 1 goal, 6 assists for 7 points. He was limited to a checking role for much of the season on the Gopher’s veteran blue line.

2011-12: Holl, a sophomore, was one of four Minnesota underclassmen on defense to play in every game as the Gophers enjoyed their winningest season since 2006-07. In 43 games he scored 3 goals with 8 assists and was plus-18 with 34 penalty minutes. The Gophers won the WCHA regular season title and reached the NCAA Frozen Four. Minnesota defeated North Dakota in the NCAA West regional final after having lost to the Fighting Sioux in the WCHA tournament semifinals.

2012-13: Holl shifted from defense to winger in his junior season as Minnesota captured its second straight WCHA regular season title. He scored 3 goals with 4 assists in 35 games and was +3 with 10 penalty minutes. One of the top teams in college hockey, the Gophers finished 26-9-5 after a 2-0 loss to Colorado College in the WCHA Final Five semifinals and a 3-2 overtime loss to eventual national champion Yale in the NCAA West Regional.

2013-14: Holl skated on the top defense pairing for Minnesota along with New York Rangers prospect Brady Skjei in his senior season. He scored 1 goal with 12 assists and was plus-10 with 20 penalty minutes in 39 games. The Golden Gophers finished first in the regular season in the inaugural season of the Big Ten hockey conference but were upset by Ohio State, 3-1, in the conference quarterfinals. Minnesota defeated Robert Morris and St. Cloud State to win the NCAA West regional title. Holl scored his only goal of the season with the Gophers short-handed and one second left in regulation in the Frozen Four semifinals against North Dakota; giving Minnesota a 2-1 victory. The Gophers fell, 7-4, to Union in the national championship game. Holl was not signed to a contract by Chicago, becoming an unrestricted free agent, and signed an AHL contract with Blackhawks’ affiliate Rockford in August 2014.

Talent Analysis

Holl combines a projectable 6'2 frame with excellent skating ability. He is a strong puck-mover on the blue line with vision and passing ability. His defensive-zone play improved over the course of his college career and Holl also played forward while at Minnesota. He is not overly-physical despite his size. and relies on positioning and quick reads to make plays in his own zone.

Future

Holl was signed to an AHL contract by Chicago affiliate Rockford and with several prospects in the Chicago pipeline he began the 2014-15 season with ECHL expansion team, the Indy Fuel. Part of a talented University of Minnesota team that was one of the top programs in college hockey in his senior year, the former second round pick faces a long road to one day reach the NHL.

Photo: Brandon Saad's third period shorthanded goal sealed a 2-1 victory over San Jose on February 22nd, marking the Blackhawks' record-setting 17th straight game without a regulation loss to open the season. (courtesy of Robin Alam/Icon SMI)

The Chicago Blackhawks have had the arsenal of picks to draft for both quantity and quality in recent years, leading to a prospect pool with both variety and depth. The team's top five prospects may stand out due to their overall upside and the likeliness that they will reach that level of play, but the rest of the list is far less clear cut as the prospects have yet to distance themselves from the pack.

Photo: One of the top defensive prospects in the Chicago Blackhawks prospect pool, Dylan Olsen will look to continue rounding out his game in Rockford in 2012-13. (courtesy of Robin Alam/Icon SMI)

A significant number of early-round draft picks in recent years have put the Chicago Blackhawks system among the deepest organizations in the league. Although there may not be much in the way of blue-chip talent, the system has multiple NHL-caliber prospects at each position and plenty of players competing at the AHL level.

The selection of talented Finnish forward Teuvo Teravainen added skill and offensive flash to the depth forwards and defensemen in the Chicago system. (courtesy of Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

Three of the Blackhawks' new additions from the 2012 NHL Draft make their debut in the new edition of the team's top 20 rankings, but the most significant storylines heading into the season belong to the prospects playing at the pro level. The NHL work stoppage will lead to a bevy of talent in the Rockford IceHogs lineup, including players like Nick Leddy, Marcus Kruger, and Brandon Saad who would have had a good chance of breaking camp with a spot in the Blackhawks lineup.